This book features in-depth and thorough coverage of Minimum Impact Mill Technologies which can meet the environmental challenges of the pulp and paper industry and also discusses Mills and Fiberlines that encompass "State-of-the-Art" technology and management practices. The minimum impact mill does not mean "zero effluent", nor is it exclusive to one bleaching concept. It is a much bigger concept which means that significant progress must be made in the following areas: Water Management, Internal Chemical Management, Energy Management, Control and Discharge of Non-Process Elements and Removal of Hazardous Pollutants. At the moment, there is no bleached kraft pulp mill operating with zero effluent. With the rise in environmental awareness due to the lobbying by environmental organizations and with increased government regulation there is now a trend towards sustainability in the pulp and paper industry. Sustainable pulp and paper manufacturing requires a holistic view of the manufacturing process. During the last decade, there have been revolutionary technical developments in pulping, bleaching and chemical recovery technology. These developments have made it possible to further reduce loads in effluents and airborne emissions. Thus, there has been a strong progress towards minimum impact mills in the pulp and paper industry. The minimum-impact mill is a holistic manufacturing concept that encompasses environmental management systems, compliance with environmental laws and regulations and manufacturing technologies.

This book offers a detailed presentation of the principles and practice of life cycle impact assessment. As a volume of the LCA compendium, the book is structured according to the LCIA framework developed by the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO)passing through the phases of definition or selection of impact categories, category indicators and characterisation models (Classification): calculation of category indicator results (Characterisation); calculating the magnitude of category indicator results relative to reference information (Normalisation); and converting indicator results of different impact categories by using numerical factors based on value-choices (Weighting). Chapter one offers a historical overview of the development of life cycle impact assessment and presents the boundary conditions and the general principles and constraints of characterisation modelling in LCA. The second chapter outlines the considerations underlying the selection of impact categories and the classification or assignment of inventory flows into these categories. Chapters three through thirteen exploreall the impact categories that are commonly included in LCIA, discussing the characteristics of each followed by a review of midpoint and endpoint characterisation methods, metrics, uncertainties and new developments, and a discussion of research needs. Chapter-length treatment is accorded to Climate Change; Stratospheric Ozone Depletion; Human Toxicity; Particulate Matter Formation; Photochemical Ozone Formation; Ecotoxicity; Acidification; Eutrophication; Land Use; Water Use; and Abiotic Resource Use. The final two chapters map out the optional LCIA steps of Normalisation and Weighting.

From the 4th - 8th of September 2011, the Eucarpia Fodder Crops and Amenity Grasses Section, held its 29th Meeting in the surroundings of Dublin Castle in Ireland. The theme of the meeting was 'Breeding strategies for sustainable forage and turf grass improvement'. Grasslands cover a significant proportion of the land mass of the world, and play a pivotal role in global food production. At the same time we are faced with several challenges that affect the way in which we think about this valuable set of resources. The population of the world is expected to exceed 9 billion by 2050, and increase of about one third relative to today's levels. This population increase will be focused in urban areas, and in what are currently viewed as "developing" countries, meaning that the buying power of this increased population will be greater - shifting the balance of demand from staple crops to high value items such as meat and dairy products. Overall that the world will have to approximately double agricultural output across all categories of food to meet the demands of this larger, urbanised population. This is occurring against a backdrop of equally large challenges in terms of global climate change. Agriculture is already a significant contributor to e.g. greenhouse gas emissions, deforestation and soil erosion. The situation is made more complex by an increased emphasis on biofuels as a solution for our imminent oil shortage, resulting in increased competition between land utilised for food and fuel. In short, agriculture must continue to feed the world, whilst not contributing to damaging it further. It must be sustainable. Plant breeding plays a significant but frequently understated role in meeting the challenges presented by this complex and changing scenario. However, plant breeding and improvement is itself undergoing radical change driven by technology. This book explores how forage and turf breeding is changing and adapting to meet these challenges using the technological advances being experienced in plant breeding as a whole.

This book introduces readers to both seed treatment and seedling pretreatments, taking into account various factors such as plant age, growing conditions and climate. Reflecting recent advances in seed priming and pretreatment techniques, it demonstrates how these approaches can be used to improve stress tolerance and enhance crop productivity. Covering the basic phenomena involved, mechanisms and recent innovations, the book offers a comprehensive guide for students, researchers and scientists alike, particularly Plant Physiologists, Agronomists, Environmental Scientists, Biotechnologists, and Botanists, who will find essential information on physiology and stress tolerance. The book also provides a valuable source of information for professionals at seed companies, seed technologists, food scientists, policymakers, and agricultural development officers around the world.

Academics, community activists, and politicians have rediscovered regionalism, insisting that regions are critical functional units in a world-wide economy and, just as important, critical functional units in individual American lives. More and more of us travel across city, county, even state borders every morning on our way to work. Our television, radio, and print media rely on a regional marketplace. Our businesses, large and small, depend on suppliers, workers, and customers who rarely reside in a single jurisdiction. The parks, riverfronts, stadiums, and museums we visit draw from, and provide an identity to, an area much larger than a single city. The fumes, gases, chemicals, and run-off that pollute our air and water have no regard for municipal boundaries.

This book lays out a variety of opinions on regionalism, its history and its future. While the essays do not comprise a debate, pro and con, about regionalism, they do provide a wide array of perspectives, based on the authors' diverse backgrounds and experience. Some contributors have made close academic studies of how regional action occurs, in various states like Minnesota, California, and Oregon; others give an historical account of a particular region like that surrounding New York City; and yet others point out aspects of regionalism--race, especially-- that should not be ignored.

Why did past efforts at regional collaboration fall apart? What did regionalist efforts of decades ago leave undone, and what new goals should regionalists set? Without an understanding of these questions, policymakers and advocates may find themselves "reinventing the region." This book provides an important understanding of how regionalism has played out in the past, how policies shape places, and the possibilities and limits of regional action.

Bruce J. Katz, director of the Brookings Institution Center on Urban and Metropolitan Policy, was formerly chief of staff at the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

This book focuses on lifelong learning for sustainable development, an aspect that has been rarely explored in great detail. It also discusses methodological approaches and experiences deriving from case studies and projects, which demonstrate how lifelong learning for sustainable development can be implemented in practice. The book provides respecting research institutions, universities, NGOs, and enterprises with an opportunity to display and present their work in this field. It fosters the exchange of information, ideas and experiences acquired in the context of concerning initiatives, especially with regard to successful projects and best practices.

This book explores various facets of the transition to renewable energy in the Arctic region. It critically examines the adverse effects of fossil fuel extraction and use, environmental and social impacts of climate change, and the possibility of a low carbon energy system through innovation and technology. Drawing together a diverse range of contributors and considering a range of new energy sources, this volume also looks at the scale of the transition challenges in the Arctic energy production and use, the necessary flexibility to balance energy demand and supply, the need of a more integrated energy infrastructure, and the new energy business models, health and safety, and quality standards for the region. Finally, it examines the transit and influence between Arctic and non-Arctic countries, in terms of growth, partnerships and new dynamics of a transitioning process to a sustainable energy system. Focusing on specific case studies that represent the most relevant energy projects in the region, this book will be of great interest to students and scholars of energy policy and transitions, climate change, global business and sustainable development.

This book includes details on the environmental implications of recycling, modeling of recycling, processing of recycled materials, recycling potential of materials, characterisation of recycled materials, reverse logistics, case studies of recycling various materials etc.

This book provides timely, multidisciplinary cross-national comparison of the institutional and social processes through which renewable energy landscapes have emerged in Southern Europe. On the basis of case studies in these countries, it analyzes the way in which and the extent to which the development of renewable energies has affected landscape forms and whether or not it has contributed to a reformulation of landscape practices and values in these countries. Landscape is conceived broadly, as a material, social, political and historical process embedded into the local realm, going beyond aesthetic. The case studies analyze renewable energy landscapes in Southern Europe on different political and geographical scales and compare different types of renewable energy such as wind, hydro, solar and biomass power. The contributors are leading experts from Spain, France, Italy and Portugal. The book is intended for researchers, graduate students and professionals interested in geography, landscape and planning.

This book describes a comprehensive framework of novel simulation approaches, conventional urban models, and related data mining techniques that will help develop planning support systems in Beijing as well as other mega-metropolitan areas. It investigates the relationships between human behaviors and spatial patterns in order to simulate activities in an urban space, visualize planning alternatives, and support decision making. The book first explains urban space using geometric patterns, such as points, networks, and polygons, that help identify patterns of household and individual human behavior. Next, it details how novel simulation methodologies, such as cellular automaton and multi-agent systems, and conventional urban modeling, such as spatial interaction models, can be used to identify an optimal or a simulated solution for a better urban form. The book develops a comprehensive land use and transportation integrated model used to explore the spatial patterns of mutual interaction between human mobility and urban space. This model can help forecast the distribution of different types of households, rent prices, and land prices, as well as the distribution of routes and traffic volume based on an appraisal of labor demand and supply. This book shows how geospatial analysis can be a useful tool for planners and decision makers to help in ascertaining patterns of activities and support urban planning. Offering both novel and conventional approaches to urban modeling, it will appeal to researchers, students, and policy makers looking for the optimal way to plan the d evelopment of a mega-metropolitan area.

This book constitutes a pioneering and unique work on Lake Victoria. It is the world 's second largest fresh-water lake and supports the livelihood of more than 30 million people. Surprisingly, there has been no comprehensive book addressing its problems and potentials. Ecology, environmental pollution and resource management are some of the issues addressed by this comprehensive insight into the limitations, challenges and opportunities facing Lake Victoria.

This book integrates decision-making and environmental science. For ecologists it will bridge the gap to economics. For practitioners in environmental economics and management it will be a major reference book. It probably contains the largest collection available of expressions and basic equations that are used in environmental sciences. The book is organized in disciplines, but it also includes 13 applications that draw on all subjects in the book, and where cross-references are extensively used. The applications show how a range of topics in economics, social sciences and ecology are interrelated when decisions have to be made.

On the eve of the World Summit for Sustainable Development (WSSD), held in autumn 2002 in Johannesburg, South Africa, United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan recommended five specific areas as focal points of discussion for the global forum: Water, energy, health, agriculture and biodiversity. In his address, "Towards a Sustainable Future," delivered just four months before the WSSD, Secretary General Annan contended that concrete progress in each of these areas, often referred to by their acronym WEHAB, would be key to improving the quality of life not only in the developing world but across the globe. For most people, I think it is fair to say that the inclusion of biodiversity in a list that focuses on basic human needs may not be self-evident. Water, energy, health and agriculture, yes. But why biodiversity? The truth is that biodiversity is just as critical to global well-being as water, energy, agriculture and health. This is because biodiversity both drives and shapes nature's intricate and dynamic structure in an enduring form and force that enables both current and future generations to enjoy its bounty.

Water is the source of life and the building block of all civilisation. The control of water has shaped politics, health, population growth, city planning, technology and religion. Controlling water has driven progress, through the growth of intensive farming and industrial revolution. It has also become a symbol of our civilisation - evidence that we have mastered nature.From the hanging gardens of Babylon and the ancient myth of the Nile to the fountains in Las Vegas, water is the one constant. We are fed by irrigated fields, live in plumbed cities, and turn on a tap without a moment's thought. Yet, this simple technology that underpins everything is at bursting point. There are too many people for the available water, and war may follow. How did we get here, and what can we do about it?

Oil, gas and minerals are vital natural resources which meet crucial human needs. Modern civilisation would struggle to survive without readily available access to these resources at reasonable and affordable prices. This volume provides critical insights into the dynamic processes of conflict and cooperation in relation to oil, gas and minerals, recognising that there is no easy and clear separation between areas of cooperation and of conflict and that these relations co-exist in complex and continually evolving ways. The contributors argue that the nature of conflict and cooperation is increasingly being shaped by the shift towards state capitalism in many parts of the resource-producing world.

In line with COP21 agreements, state-led climate change mitigation and adaptation actions are being undertaken to transition to carbon-neutral, green economies. However, the capacity of many countries for action is limited and may result in a 'boomerang effect', defined as the unintended negative consequences of such policies and programmes on local communities and their negative feedbacks on the state. To avoid this effect, there is a need to understand the policy drivers, decision-making processes, and impacts of such action, in order to determine the ways and means of minimizing negative effects and maximizing mutually beneficial policy outcomes. This book directly engages the policy debates surrounding water resources and climate actions through both theoretical and comparative case studies. It develops the 'boomerang effect' concept and sets it in relation to other conceptual tools for understanding the mixed outcomes of state-led climate change action, for example 'backdraft' effect and 'maldevelopment'. It also presents case studies illustrative of the consequences of ill-considered state-led policy in the water sector from around the world. These include Africa, China, South Asia, South America, the Middle East, Turkey and Vietnam, and examples of groundwater, hydropower development and forest hydrology, where there are often transboundary consequences of a state's policies and actions. In this way, the book adds empirical and theoretical insights to a still developing debate regarding the appropriate ways and means of combating climate change without undermining state and social development.

This is the second volume of papers in the topical area of environmental management. Arising from work done by the International Centre for the Environment at the University of Bath, the papers address inter-disciplinary environmental themes particularly from a business and management perspective.

"As the international community struggles with major issues such as deforestation, it is increasingly turning to sustainable development and market-based mechanisms to tackle environmental problems. Focusing on forestry, this book investigates the legitimacy of global forums and evaluates the quality of global governance in the current era"--Provided by publisher.

This book discussing in detail the Social Life Cycle Assessment (SLCA) of the global economy using the comprehensive Multi-Regional Input-Output (MRIO) technique. The content is presented in two parts, the first of which offers an introduction to social accounting and how it has been developed over the past few years with details on the methodologies and databases used. The second part of the book describes the footprints of the social accounts that have the highest impact on people's well-being (employment, income, working conditions,and inequality) and how they are linked to international trade. The need for reporting on such indicators falls within the purview of corporate/national social responsibility (part of the Triple Bottom Line). The book offers a valuable contribution to the literature for researchers and students engaged in the social sciences, human rights, and the implications of international trade on labour in developing countries.iv>

This book explains to governments, decision makers and disaster professionals the potential uses of recent technologies for disaster monitoring and risk reduction based on the knowledge and experience of prominent experts/researchers in the relevant fields. It discusses the application of recent technological developments for emerging disaster risks in today's societies and deliberates on the various aspects of disaster risk reduction strategies, especially through sustainable community resilience and responses. This book consists of selected invited papers on disaster management, which focus on community resilience and responses towards disaster risk reduction based on experiences, and closely examines the coordinated research activities involving all stakeholders, especially the communities at risk. Many regions of the world and aspects of disaster risk and its management are covered. It is described how recent technologies will support better understanding and action to reduce the number and impact of disasters in future. The principal audience for this book is researchers, urban planners, policy makers, as well as students.

The book is written in the backdrop of the environmental impacts of and future requirements from the natural environment for rapid economic growth that has characterized recent economic history of China and India, especially over the past few decades. The environmental impacts of such rapid economic changes have been, more frequently than otherwise, degrading in character. Environmental impacts of economic activities create degraded natural ecosystems by over utilization of nature's provisioning ecosystem services (from Himalaya to the Ocean), as well, by the use of the natural environment as sink for dumping of unmarketable products or unused inputs of economic activities. Such processes affect wide range of ecosystem processes on which the natural environment including human population depend on. Critical perspectives cast by various chapters in this book draw attention to the various ways in which space and power interact to produce diverse geographies of sustainability in a globalizing world. They also address the questions such as who decides what kind of a spatial arrangement of political power is needed for sustaining the environment. Who stands to gain (or lose) what, when, where, and why from certain geographical areas being demarcated as ecologically unique, fragile and vulnerable environments? Whose needs and values are being catered to by a given ecosystem service? What is the scope for critical inquiry into the ways in which the environment is imagined, represented and resisted in both geopolitical struggles and everyday life? The book provides insights to both academics from diverse disciplines and policy makers, civil society actors interested in mutual exchange of knowledge between China and India.

This book contains up-to-date studies on the economics of sustainable energy in agriculture. The studies focus on energy efficiency improvement and the use of biomass. Specific attention is paid to the economic aspects of land use and the competition for land, both for food production and dedicated energy crops. The book will be of special interest to economists, agronomists, energy experts, and politicians that deal with energy issues in agriculture, both in developing and industrialised countries.

The book is relevant for those who are interested in the topic of global warming and carbon sequestration, and the transition towards carbon-free energy resources.

Comparative Evaluations of Innovative Fisheries Management begins with a look at four places outside the European Union known for innovative management: New Zealand, Nova Scotia, Alaska and Iceland. Then the focus shifts to the success criteria related to specific disciplines including biological and social robustness, economic efficiency and impacts on management costs. Hypotheses are tested using data capable of generating useful results. The main conclusions include a retrospective of how key concepts defined and represented the various perspectives, skills and backgrounds that made up the multidisciplinary CEVIS project.

With an annual growth rate of over 35%, wind is the fastest growing energy source in the world today. As a result of intensive research and developmental efforts, the technology of generating energy from wind has significantly changed during the past five years. The book brings together all the latest aspects of wind energy conversion technology - right from the wind resource analysis to grid integration of the wind generated electricity. The chapters are contributed by academic and industrial experts having vast experience in these areas. Each chapter begins with an introduction explaining the current status of the technology and proceeds further to the advanced lever to cater for the needs of readers from different subject backgrounds. Extensive bibliography/references appended to each chapter give further guidance to the interested readers.

During the past decade many countries in the world have experienced droughts, with severe impacts on water urban supply systems. Because droughts are natural phenomena, water utilities must design and implement drought management plans. This topic was selected for the International Course on Drought Management Planning in Water Supply Systems, which took place in Valencia, Spain, on 9-12 December 1997, and was hosted by the Universidad Internacional Men ndez y Pelayo (UIMP). The contributions in this book have been carefully selected and presented in four sections: Introduction Water Supply Systems Modernization Drought Management in an Urban Context Practical Cases (Israel, USA, Italy, Spain) To achieve a well-balanced approach, authors were invited from academia as well as from consultancies and water utilities, and have wide experience in the subject. The book is mainly aimed at water supply engineers, working in utilities and consultancies.